Jayhawks Redemption: A PBB Interlude
by PRWASeasonTwo
Summary: Power Rangers/Suite Life series crossover in psav2005's PBB universe. Kansas is vying for another NCAA Title and for one Connecticut student and some friends from the West Coast, the run means so much more than the game.
1. Rock Chalk Jayhawk KU

A/N: A Pink Bracket Buster interlude, Rock Chalk Jayhawk style, in both the Suite Life and Power Rangers universes, as for the five original Rangers, two close friends and one Yale student, Kansas' NCAA tournament run to the NCAA finals means so much more than the actual game.

A/N 2: I own nothing.

Rock, Chalk, Jayhawk KU

**Sunday, March 11**

**Approximately 7:30 p.m. EDT**

**Boston, Massachusetts**

The greatest three weeks of the year were upon everybody.

The NCAA basketball tournament was the greatest three weeks in sports, and for this small group of people from Seven Seas High School before going off to college, the tournament meant that much more.

With spring break en vogue for every one of the group, they had all been invited back to Wilfred Tipton's house for spring break. All had their own apartments but the kids had a long haul in their freshman years at Yale, UConn, St. John's and it was such that Wilfred had decided out of the goodness of his heart to invite the nine to his home.

At the moment, they were watching the NCAA Selection Show aftermath on ESPN, much like their tight knit group of friends out in California (the two groups hadn't seen each other since Survivor Series the previous November) and there were different looks on the faces of the group.

Of those gathered, only four went to schools that were actually in the tournament. Connecticut had struggled through the whole year which was tough for Maya, Woody, Addison and Zack but the Huskies were back in the tournament and felt good about the draw.

The four had learned their school would face Iowa State in the first game Thursday. None of them had seen Iowa State play but they felt if they got a shot at Kentucky, who they would probably play in round two if the Huskies got that far, they would be a tough out.

Cody, London and Marcus couldn't care less who won, although Cody wanted to see Harvard lose and Kansas make it far since his girlfriend was a native Kansan and rabid Jayhawk supporter. And with Yale out of the tournament, Bailey was Rock Chalk Jayhawk all the way.

Bailey Pickett was a rather notorious Kansas pessimist amongst the group as she'd seen her fair share of early exits over the years, the most crushing one being the previous year's loss to Virginia Commonwealth in the Elite Eight when Kansas appeared to have all the tools.

But this year Bailey saw something a little different in this team. No, this Jayhawks team didn't have the tools that the previous year's team had, but this team had heart and guts. They had started the year ranked in the top 15 with low expectations but had won the Big 12 that year, denying Bailey's hated rival Missouri a Big 12 regular season title on the way out of the conference.

However, Missouri had won the conference's tournament title which had made Bailey quite sour over the weekend, especially since KU stunk in the conference tournament against Baylor.

"You're still mad about Missouri winning the conference tournament aren't you my love bug?" Cody said. It almost didn't seem to matter that KU would have a number 2 seed in a winnable bracket, with games in Omaha and St. Louis throughout.

"Yes, it makes me mad. Greasy, slimy backwoods hicks got so damn lucky without us kicking their ass one more time," Bailey said. "It makes my blood boil."

"Don't worry, they're going to rot in the SEC once Kentucky and Kim's school Florida get through with them," Cody Martin said. "They will wish they were back in the Big 12 by that point."

"Besides, what happens if Missouri doesn't win the tournament?" Zack said. "We all know that school is basically the Vancouver Canucks of their conference…always the bridesmaid, never the bride."

"Yeah but KU has a history of chokes too," Bailey said. "And some of the teams in that bracket can do things that can really hurt Kansas. That said, I don't think the makeup of this team will allow for a slackoff in intensity and we'll play more with a chip on our shoulder this year."

"Self has done an amazing job," Cody said. "I think the people who say he isn't a great coach are nuts. He's done a lot with a little this year."

The thoughts then shifted out West, where the group of nine knew their friends were having a jolly old time with their own brackets.

"I wonder what the guys are doing for their brackets this year," Maya said. "Last year was so bloody amazing with all of us involved."

No sooner had that come out of her mouth than Cody's cell phone went off.

"Speak of the devil. It's her," Cody said as he looked at his caller ID. After a few minutes of conversation, Cody signaled for his girlfriend as the call was for her. Cody had a wry smile on his face too, so something was definitely up.

"**Hello?"**

"**Well, hello there, Bailey," a familiar feminine voice greeted her.**

"**Hey Kim, long time no speak," Bailey said. "How's it hanging?"**

"**I'm pretty good," Kim said. "You getting ready for the Jayhawks on Friday?"**

"**Yep, Omaha and St. Louis the first two weekends, wish I could go," Bailey said. "Tough road, St. Mary's the first weekend probably and then Georgetown after that…and if we make it another battle with Coach Roy, probably."**

"**Yeah but I think this team can do it," Kim said. "We're doing a Ranger team up thing against pretty much every team in history this year and I'm on the team with the originals, also with Hayley and Phil. We think we're probably gonna go with Kansas to win it."**

"**Well hopefully your trend of picking winners will continue," Bailey said. "Your reputation for picking champions is well known around here. What team is Tommy on?"**

"**He's with the team called the New Era which is the ones that came after us up until Turbo 2, also teaming up with our good friend Ernie. Rumor has it they're going with Syracuse to win it."**

"**Ah, I see," Bailey said. "And the Dino Thunder team?"**

"**Rumor has it Conner wants Kentucky," Kim said. Bailey could literally feel the scowl even though she could not see Kim – Kentucky and Florida were big SEC rivals.**

"**Well, you know Conner," Bailey said. "So are we going to be doing calls as long as KU is in the tournament?"**

"**Yeah, I think one of us will like to be on the phone with you come Friday," Kim said. "Don't know which one it will be as Phil and I are going to his alma mater of Bowling Green to watch the Lady Gators play. I'm guessing we'll probably have Hayley or Jason on that duty."**

"**All right, great," Bailey said. "Have a wonderful time watching your Lady Gators, and hopefully KU can get six more wins. Starting with Detroit on Friday."**

"**Great talk to you soon," Kim said as the line went dead.**

When Bailey had told the good tidings that she'd heard, several eyebrows were raised around the room. The notion that Bailey would have Kimberly in the Jayhawks corner for the duration caused some glances among the group.

"I've got to say I'm a bit jealous," Maya said. "You've got the one person who can win a bet in KU's corner. That's impressive."

**Friday, March 16**

**Approx. 7 p.m. Boston time/4 p.m. LA time**

Bailey was roaring in jubilation, she was so happy…and it wasn't for a KU victory.

No, it was because KU's archrival Missouri had become just the fifth No. 2 seed in history to lose in the first round as they fell to 15 seed Norfolk State, 86-84.

"Holy crap, now THAT was a basketball game," Bailey said to Cody and Zack, who had watched the whole game with her and cheered for Norfolk State just as loud as Bailey did. "Finally, SOMEONE exposed the little shrimps on Missouri besides us."

"What did I tell you?" Zack Martin said. "They're just like the Vancouver Canucks…always the bridesmaid but never, ever the bride."

"Affirmed, bro," Cody said. "Shit, talk about a fraud…they could have at least had the dignity to make the second round and get whipped by Kim's school."

Just then, Bailey's phone beeped…it wasn't a call, but it was a text.

"Well, read it," Cody said.

"It's from Hayley," Bailey said. "She said, **'just so you know, we originals and Tommy enjoyed that Missouri game almost as much as you guys did. Jason and I will talk to you tonight and RCJH, KU, Hayley.'**

"I have to say I enjoyed that too. Norfolk State earned the victory and it just shows anything can happen in this tournament," Cody said.

"That's what they get for screwing with the Big 12," Bailey said. "They're gonna rot in the SEC and I will love every second of it."

**About 12 midnight, Boston time**

"Good job boys, nice start," Bailey said as Kansas had pulled away for a 65-50 victory over the Detroit Titans which had propelled them into a matchup with Purdue on Sunday night, as Purdue had beaten St. Mary's earlier in the evening, 72-69.

She'd also found great joy in texting with five people across the continent who were in her corner.

'**That's a really good team defensively that you guys have,' Jason said. 'That's gonna go a long way towards a possible title.'**

'**Yeah, but I'm still concerned about the lack of shooting,' Bailey texted back. 'It always worries me sometimes when Connor Teahan is in the game. He's a streak shooter but sometimes does dumb things.'**

'**Yeah but as you said he can shoot a bit,' Jason said, 'and considering that there aren't many shooters on that team it is a bonus.'**

'**Sure it is,' Bailey said. 'Hey I have to get to bed, Cody promised me to take me to another Bruins hockey game before we leave again for Yale so we're going to see them play tomorrow afternoon instead of watching the Barneys from KSU play Cuse.'**

**It was true, Bailey had come to like watching hockey as a spectator after she'd gone to one of the Bruins playoff games two years ago. She'd gone to two games during the Cup Finals and had already been to one Bruins regular season game this year and as mentioned would go to another tomorrow.**

'**Ah speaking of that,' Jason said. 'You should know that Crystal, the Canucks fan in our group picked Mizzou to win it all. Double suck for her.'**

'**Must be pathetic being a fan of that team AND picking Mizzou to win it all. G2G, TTYL.'**

Bailey was giggling all the way to bed after that when she felt a tap on her shoulder.

"What's so funny, love bug?" Cody said.

"You know Crystal?" Bailey said. "The Canucks fan?"

"Yeah, what about her, other than it's pathetic she rides them so much?" Cody said.

"Well, she showed herself again by picking Mizzou to win it all," Bailey said.

Cody howled in laughter as he said, "Oh my Lord that's got to suck BIG TIME. I think she's a nice lady but she's got terrible taste in teams."

"I sense a text coming," Bailey said.

"Oh you know it my love bug," Cody said as he quickly fired off a text and laughed again when he got a response.

"I said, **your taste in teams is terrible. A Canucks fan picking Mizzou to win it all…pathetic. From Boston with love, Cody. **It was deserved."

"And what did she say?" Bailey said.

"Well, in typical Canucks fan butt hurt fashion she replies with, **don't you start young man.** Too funny."

**Sunday, March 18**

**11:00 p.m. Boston time**

**New Haven, Connecticut**

'**Man, good win, but these guys scare me sometimes,'** Bailey said in a text to Billy, who had volunteered to take over in that capacity for the evening with Jason doing that two nights ago and Kim and Phil still out of town.

'**Yeah, survive and advance I guess but they played down to their opponent tonight…their IQ was not sharp,' **Billy said.

'**Come again?'**

'**He means they didn't play smart. Love, Trini.'**

'**Ah yes, I agree with that. But the SOP for this team seems to be to tear at everyone's heartstrings till the last and pull it out. I got to admire Hummel's guts though, he played his heart out.'**

'**That he did, he has a lot of heart and soul. Well, I guess it's pretty late where you are so good night. Love, Billy.'**

**Friday, March 23**

**Boston, Massachusetts**

WrestleMania, as well as The Rock/John Cena showdown may still be nine days away but that this point, Bailey and Cody were wrestling with something else. Both, along with the rest of the gang, were back in Boston for the sweet 16 and elite eight games thanks to Wilfred Tipton but the worry wasn't about those games…there was only one concern on the minds of these two.

Why oh why did the Kansas Jayhawks have to wait until the dying seconds to put everyone away?

It was cathartic how this team was playing…they barely squeaked games out against Purdue and North Carolina State, both low seeded teams and even if they played well Sunday, even though North Carolina was missing their point guard it was likely to come down to the wire again.

"I guess these guys really are like the Red Sox, Bails," Cody said. "They win but they sure don't make it easy on themselves."

"You're telling me. Watching that game was like having open heart surgery," Bailey said. "There has got to be SOMETHING that can get this offense on track. I'd love to see Kansas play in New Orleans but unless we play better it's going to be tough against Roy's crew."

"I'm surprised you like Roy at all," Cody said. "I mean, he left you guys."

"Nah, he's all right," Bailey said. "I'm no fan of his but I don't hate the man. We wouldn't be the program we are now if it weren't for Roy and besides, the man showed up at the national title game four years ago with a KU pin on in support of the team."

"Either way it should be a classic matchup," Cody said. "I'm pulling for KU and Ohio State so you and Woody can duke it out in the final four."

**Sunday, March 25**

**7:00 eastern time**

**New Haven, Conneticut**

Finally, Bailey and Cody (who had jumped on the KU bandwagon with Bailey) could breathe again.

Like the Jayhawks previous games in the tournament, it was a cathartic game, tied at 47 at the half but slowed down in the second half, in fact it was 68-67 Kansas in the dying minutes before the Jayhawks made a late 12-0 run to seal the victory.

No sooner had the game ended than Bailey's phone started buzzing. She didn't even look to see who it was…because she knew damn good and well who was probably texting her.

"**Roooooooooooock…." Trini had started**

"**Challllllllllllk…." came Hayley next.**

"**Jayyyyyyyyyyyhawk…" Jaosn came next**

"**KKKKKKKKKKKKUUUUUUUUUUUU…" all the originals plus Phil said simultaneously.**

"**Roooooooooooock…" Bailey said again**

"**Chaaaaaaaaaaaaallllllllllk…" Trini said**

"**Jayhawk****…" Billy said**

"**KKKKKKKKKKKKKUUUUUUUUUUUU…." everyone said again.**

**Then, Bailey's phone started ringing. On impulse, she picked it up.**

"**FINAL FOUR BABY!" Bailey said. "I can't believe it…we did it! I guess it's true…Kim's magic pays dividends!"**

"**We're proud of you guys tonight," Jason said as Bailey realized Hayley was allowing Jason to use her phone. "Remember to party safe if you go out tonight although I'm sure all your friends will be buying you some soda over there." Bailey could feel Jason handing the phone over as he was obviously going to rub Tommy's nose in the dirt.**

"**The team played much better than they did in their first three games," Hayley said next. "If they play like that I feel they can win."**

"**We did play better. I feel bad for Marshall though," Bailey said. "If they had beaten us I would have been for them all the way."**

"**You'll be getting a call from Phil real soon, believe me. If you guys keep Ohio State and Kentucky from meeting for the title then you'll be his hero," Hayley said.**

"**I'm just so friggin happy to be back after last year," Bailey said. "I feel sick that I'm in Connecticut and that I am missing this. KU basketball is very important for the livelihood of the state…they're pretty much our pro team." **

**"I'm so happy for you Bailey, I'm sure things are crazy in Kansas right now, I know it sucks missing it I missed Oklahoma's 2000 football title because I was in Boston at MIT, but London is taking you all to New Orleans so that will be great, have fun, oh and nothing against Woody but tell him me, Phil, and the Originals say go Kansas, talk to you soon, bye," Hayley said.**

**2 hours later**

Bailey smiled when the phone rang again…right as she'd finished another load of homework. It was Phil, the caller ID made zero mistakes.

"**Yeah?" Bailey said.**

"**Just please oh pretty please help your boys keep me from the nightmare of an Ohio State/Kentucky final…I grew up in Cincinnati and love the Gators and Bearcats, thus I hate both teams. Anything BUT an OSU/UK final would please me greatly."**

"**We will do our best but it's another tough matchup," Bailey said. "Ohio State sort of underachieved during the year but played well in the East Region games. I saw them play in Boston…they were way too much for Syracuse to handle."**

"**Keep it close and OSU will find a way to lose, it's what they do," Phil said. "The Bearcats had them on the run for a bit in Boston but fizzled out in the second half. I don't know how they beat Syracuse but just keep it close and they should fold. And one more thing, beware of Eric, Wes and Skull who will be in your ear all week."**

"**Oh Lordy, did they pick Ohio State? Well, I guess we'll just have to shut them up, now won't we?"**

"**They were talking about how Rock Chalk Jayhawk is more annoying than O-H-I-O and you have to be kidding me about that," Phil said.**

"**I've been a Jayhawk for years and yeah that's pretty much a joke. I mean, come on, THEY AREN'T OHIO for heaven's sake! Christ, at least Kansas State doesn't call themselves 'Kansas.' I keep trying to tell Woody this but no, he won't listen."**

"**They are the worst, there's no doubt about it. I know you and Woody are tight and I think he's a good guy but still he's a Buckeye fan which takes him down a notch in my book," Phil said. "Just please win, I don't care how."**

**Saturday, March 31**

**Mercedes Benz Superdome**

**New Orleans, LA**

As reported earlier, London Tipton had scored another huge coup for the group, scoring Final Four tickets for the whole gang. Still, the group remained together. New Orleans was a wild, unpredictable city and you never knew what you would find.

In the day or so that the group had been there, they'd encountered lots of local talk about not just the Final Four, but the New Orleans Saints bounty situation, which had cost their coach a whole year, their general manager eight games and a top assistant coach six games amongst other things – the NFL's equivalent of a death penalty in the NCAA.

They also had fantasy baseball drafts the whole night before – much like the Rangers and their friends were doing for this tournament, fantasy baseball was divided into multiple teams. The only difference was, the original six Ninjetti Power Rangers were the main group, in which Cody and Bailey were established.

On another team, which was designated Team Zeo/Morphin 1, you had Jason, Zack, Trini, Tanya and Kat. Woody, Maya and Addison had chosen to join this group.

As expected, Turbo 2/Space team formed a group, with London and Marcus in that group. Ironically, it was one of the largest groups of the fantasy baseball leagues, with 10 members.

Hayley usually chose to join the Dino Thunder guys as a group instead of with the other civilians which was always surprising. Zack Martin was in this group, as was Cody and Bailey as pretty much everyone in the group was doubling up in leagues.

The civilians also had their own leagues, divided into two parts. Ernie controlled one of the leagues, which Kirby, Maya and Woody were also in, as it was comprised of 10.

Lindsey controlled the other league which included, amongst other participants, Addison, London, Marcus, Wes and Zack. Eric had decided not to play…the kids learned that the Rangers derided him for being the lone guy in the group not to play fantasy sports. That was the largest of the groups, with 12 participants.

But now things had settled down and the kids could watch basketball. Today though, they were spread out all throughout the Superdome as Woody had gone to the Ohio State cheering section and Maya chose to join him while Bailey had gone to be with the Jayhawk rooters and not surprisingly, Cody had followed her.

They'd already seen some wild things…including some really arrogant people wearing Kentucky shirts.

"What's with those guys, Cody?" Bailey said as the two watched Louisville go on a run to climb closer against the Wildcats. "It's like they think they're God's gift to basketball or something."

"Yeah I'm really taken aback by the arrogance of these guys," Cody said. "It's like when the Bruins played the Canucks in the finals last year for the Cup and I wanted to respect them but their arrogance was so off the charts that they make it so easy to dislike them."

"Well, I hope KU wins so we can play these guys because I'm not impressed," Bailey said. "If they were as great as they think they'd be running Louisville off the floor by 20 points. If they think they will walk all over us…"

"Yeah, I hear you," Cody said. "But like you said, Ohio State is a tough matchup in and of itself."

**Some time during the OSU/Kansas first half**

It was nearing the end of the first half and Bailey sighed…to this point she was feeling as blue as the KU colors she was wearing.

By this time, Ohio State was up by 13 points and it was déjà vu all over…KU would have to come from behind, again.

"Well, like you said before, it's standard operating procedure for this team," Cody said as he turned towards his girlfriend. "Let's see if they can do it one more time."

**Early in the second half**

Unlike what happened in the first half, the tables were now even as the Jayhawks had pulled back to near even with the Buckeyes, as KU had come out a completely different team after the half.

"I don't know what Bill said to them at halftime but hopefully they can keep this up," Bailey said. "We are being a lot more assertive now."

**Some time later**

Finally the game was over and even though Kansas had done some dumb things down the stretch of the game (and had been the victim of a bad Jeff Withey traveling call) the Jayhawks had finally put away the Buckeyes 64-62.

In the aftermath, Bailey looked across over at Woody in the Ohio State section, and she saw him nod his head in affirmation…it wasn't anything new for Woody as he'd seen Cleveland and Ohio State teams collapse many times, it was almost getting redundant at this point. Even as she did this, she held one finger in the air, as if to say one more win.

Not long after the group had met up again and left the Superdome, Bailey's phone was ringing again. She didn't even look to see who it was, she just hit the button and said, **"Hello?"**

"**You should see some of the faces here in the aftermath of what just happened," a deep voice said…it was a voice she instantly recognized as Jason's.**

"**What do you mean?" Bailey said.**

"**Well, you've got Phil jumping up and down because you kept him from his nightmare of an Ohio State/Kentucky final, you've got us originals who are grinning from ear to ear and most of all you have Eric, Wes and Skull who are shocked beyond belief."**

"**I kept warning them all week that Ohio State would choke…it's what they do," Bailey said. "But no, they wouldn't listen to me. This KU team never gives up."**

"**Even if you guys lose Monday night, you have to consider this year a roaring success," Zack said. "Who would have thought?"**

"**Oh I considered it a success to win the Big 12 and make sure Missouri didn't," Bailey said. "To be in the finals against Kentucky is not something I could have ever imagined with this team. It's the icing on the cake. We're a perfectly flawed team…but one that finds a way every single night."**

"**It sucks that you're going to have to watch this thing from an apartment Monday night," Trini said.**

"**Yep, stupid, stupid school gets in the way," Bailey said. "Rest assured though I want to beat these Kentucky guys more than anything in the world. Phil warned us about their arrogance…oh my God they think they are God's gift to basketball. Besides, it will hurt if we lose…second place is the first loser."**

"**Unfortunately yes, you are right. But you have to admit it would hurt Kentucky a lot more if the Wildcats lose. KU is not expected to win," Kim said. "Sure it's going to hurt if you lose…for about an hour. They will be jumping off bridges in Lexington if they lose."**

"**Hey listen, we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow…flight back then WrestleMania tomorrow night at the bar in New Haven," Bailey said. "So we'd better sign off for now. Promise me that all of you will text during Mania?"**

"**We will," Kim said. "We've been waiting to see Rocky kick Cena's ass for years now. This WrestleMania will be something special."**

With that, the line went dead and Bailey and Cody looked at each other and said, simultaneously,

"Here we go again."

TBC…


	2. Jayhawks Come Up Short

A/N: A Pink Bracket Buster interlude, Rock Chalk Jayhawk style, in both the Suite Life and Power Rangers universes, as for the five original Rangers, two close friends and one Yale student, Kansas' NCAA tournament run to the NCAA finals means so much more than the actual game.

A/N 2: I own nothing.

Jayhawks Come Up Short

**Monday, April 2**

**Some time after 9:00 p.m. local time**

**New Haven, Connecticut**

Even with baseball season just a few measly days away and the Stanley Cup Playoffs just a week away, and WrestleMania having been just the previous night, the focus was on none of these things.

Because right then and there, Bailey Pickett was getting set to watch the national title game, as she hoped her Kansas Jayhawks would complete a remarkable tournament run which had seen them go from a team who wasn't one of the favorites to win it all to a team that would have a chance to pull a legendary upset.

Bailey and her boyfriend Cody Martin were still in a rush from the whole weekend, which not only included the Final Four in New Orleans before a flight back to the Northeast the next day, but witnessing The Rock defeating John Cena at WrestleMania 28 the night before. The eight students who had gone to school together had decided to gather in New Haven that night for that express purpose before going back to their respective schools.

But tonight, for Bailey, it was about basketball again as the underdog Kansas Jayhawks were set to take on the Kentucky Wildcats in the NCAA Championship game. Nobody was giving Kansas a chance but that was just the way she liked it – no one but no one thought they'd be in the championship game.

She'd also been talking all day with the Original Power Rangers who had gone with Kansas to win it all, plus Phil and Hayley and the whole group was behind her all the way. Actually most of the Ranger teams who had no vested interest in the outcome were rooting for Kansas as well and Jason made sure to send her best wishes from most of the rest of the Ranger teams even though not many outside the immediate group knew her contact information.

About the only group who hadn't sent her great wishes was the Dino Thunder team and all those who had picked Kentucky to win the championship but they had nothing against Bailey, it was just business.

As far as Monday Night Raw was concerned, while Bailey would normally watch that, this was the NCAA Championship game so Woody Fink, who had seen his Ohio State team lose to KU Saturday night, had been assigned to keep a watch for what happened on Raw in the aftermath of WrestleMania and he'd gladly taken it, he had nothing against Bailey but the Ohio State loss had crushed him.

Rumors had it that Brock Lesnar would be returning to WWE that night so this would be an important task.

As she watched the teams being introduced, she was tapped on the shoulder by her boyfriend.

"Remember, no matter what happens tonight you should be proud of those boys in those Kansas uniforms," Cody said. "They remind me so much of the Patriots ten years ago when they won, not the greatest talent but a true team in every sense of the word."

"And can you imagine what this team would be like with just one terrific shooter who knocks everything down?" Bailey said. "That is the ONE thing this team misses, a CONSISTENT outside shooter."

"I would have to agree," Cody said. "If this team had a shooter oh boy would they be tough tonight. So what's gotta happen for them to win?"

"A good start would be great," Bailey said. "They could win coming from behind but I wouldn't count on it. This team is being talked about as one of the greatest teams in history so we have to make them feel us right away."

**Some time during the first half**

With six minutes to go in the first half, Bailey's hopes for a good KU start had been all but shattered as Kentucky had shown why they were the top rated team for most of the year. At this point, the score was 34-19 and the young Kansas girl turned Yale student was shellshocked.

"I knew Kentucky was good but they are absolutely destroying us right now," Bailey said. "No one has made us look this bad all year long."

"Well, the Jayhawks will make a run, as you said that's their standard operating procedure," Cody said. "Jason said not to worry, Calipari's teams are fully capable of choking and who knows, if Kansas tightens the noose, maybe we'll see it again."

"Yeah but we have to figure them out first," Bailey said, "and that's not going to be an easy task at all. I want to beat them so bad but damn, their team is good. Most of these guys look like they'll play in the NBA."

"By the way, you might be interested in this," Cody said. "I got texts from both Woody and Zack…both of them said that on Raw tonight, Rock hinted a run at the WWE Championship!"

"The Rock, as WWE Champ, wow that would be amazing," Bailey said. "Hey look, Jason just texted me!"

"What did he say?" Cody said.

The text reads, **'Interested in tickets to summerslam?'** Seriously that's what it said."

"Absolutely we'd be interested," Cody said, "especially if Rocky is competing for the WWE title in that pay-per-view. Better contact London's daddy, and text Jason that yes, we are interested."

"On it," Bailey said.

**Later, some time during the second half**

At this point, it was a decidedly different atmosphere in this apartment room. It was the under 12 TV timeout in the second half, the Jayhawks had cut the Wildcats lead to ten points, and it began to feel like this might be a game after all. It started to look like this might be a game because KU stars Thomas Robinson and Tyshawn Taylor were starting to put the Jayhawks on their backs.

"Can they do it, my love bug?" Cody said. "It's a game again…"

"We've got to make them feel a little bit tight, I don't sense that they feel tight quite yet," Bailey said. "Get this thing down to about five or six with a few minutes left and we've got a chance."

"Especially since Calipari's teams are notorious for missing free throws in the clutch…although this is a good free throw shooting team, they do struggle at times with free throws like the last two games," Cody said. "Things are getting interesting now."

"Phil just texted me," Bailey said. "He just simply said, **bring it home, KU**."

**Some time after the game**

Unfortunately for Bailey, the game was over and the Kansas title dreams had been dashed.

Kansas had actually closed within five points with about a minute and a half remaining but had come no further as Kentucky had held on…for dear life…and won 67-59 to claim the national title…John Calipari's first national title.

To Cody's great surprise, Bailey didn't seem that upset…after the Jayhawks had lost to VCU the previous year she had been devastated but that was not the case this year.

"I'm proud of this team, they gave it all they had," Bailey said. "It sucks we didn't win, but we have a young team and we should continue to recruit well in the future. If we can get some shooters and continue to get talent in here this team will win the title in the next two years."

"I don't doubt it for a bit," Cody said. "Maybe it won't happen next year with Robinson probably leaving but in two years…wow, look out for this team."

"I would have to agree, Robinson is gone," Bailey said. "It sucks but he's NBA ready right now. I would not fault him for leaving at all…without him we don't get to the title game."

"By the way, Woody said that Brock Lesnar is indeed back on Raw," Cody said. "He hit an F-5 on Cena to end the show."

"Now that's awesome," Bailey said. "Brock was great in the UFC but I'm glad to see him back in WWE again. It wasn't that long ago that he was kicking everybody's butt."

"His matches with Big Evil Undertaker are still some of the best I have ever seen. Their rivalry is legendary, and I think Brock is one of the biggest sensations the WWE ever saw. He could hold his own with anyone and was a great heel. Where do you think KU starts next year?"

"In the rankings?" Bailey said.

"Yeah," Cody said.

"Well this was a rebuilding year or was supposed to be and we were ranked 13 in preseason," Bailey said. "I think somewhere around 5 to 7 might be realistic, especially with Robinson leaving. It's a young team as you've said many times before."

"What are the originals' reactions?" Cody said.

"Surprisingly I am getting more good game texts from the guys than bad stuff," Bailey said. "Phil is upset that Kentucky won but he's from Cincinnati so that is understandable. I got a little nasty stuff from him. Other than that, not much negative."

"There shouldn't be," Cody said. "Now here's to the Red Sox."

"Yep, here's to the Red Sox…and redemption for them too," Bailey said as the two kissed.

**The End**


End file.
